I. Introduction 5

About This Guide 5

The Questionnaire 6

A Note of Thanks to the Participants 7

How to Participate in the Next Buyer's Guide 7

II. Credit & Collection Technology Universe Overview 11

Chart 1: The Credit & Collection Technology Universe 11

Table 1: The Order-to-Cash Technology Universe 12

III. Before You Go Shopping: 13

Ten Tips to Help You Get Off on the Right Foot 13

1. First, Clean Up Your A/R Data 13
2. Don't Assume a Single Vendor is the Best Solution 14
3. Recognize That Your Processes Will Change 14
4. Be Prepared to Address Organizational Issues 15
5. Identify Your Weakest Links 16
6. Rank Your Automation Opportunities 16
7. Put Together a Business Case 17
8. Get Top Management Support 17
9. Designate a Project Manager 18
10. Build a Team 18

IV. The Vendor Selection Process 19

1. Step 1: Create a Budget and Timeline 19
   

2. Step 2: Build or Buy 20
   

   Table 2: Buy vs. Build 21
   

3. Step 3: Installed or ASP 22
   

   Table 3: Installed vs. ASP Software – Pros & Cons 23
   

4. Step 4: All-in-One or Best-of-Breed 23
   

   Table 4: All-in-One vs. Best-of-Breed 25
   

5. Step 5: Narrow Down Your Options 25
   

6. Step 6: Create an RFP 26
   

7. Step 7: Making the Final Decision 28
   

   Table 5: Software Evaluation - Final Checklist 28

V. Vendor Comparison Charts in 6 Functional Areas 29

1. Application Processing & Risk Evaluation Tools 30
   

   Table 6 - Application Processing & Data Gathering 32
   

   Table 7 - Risk Management & Scoring Tools 34

2. Collection Tools 36
   

   Table 8 – Collection Tools - Strategy & Workflow Tools 39
   

   Table 9 – Collector Productivity Tools 41
   

   Table 10 – Reporting/Management Tools 43

3. Deduction & Dispute Management 45
   

   Table 11 - Deduction & Dispute Management 47

4. Invoice Accuracy 49
   

   Table 12 – Invoice Accuracy Tools – Dispute Prevention 51

5. Remittance Processing 53
   

   Table 13 - Remittance Processing 55

6. Reporting & Analytics 57
   

   Table 14 – Reporting & Analytics 59

VI. Vendor Overviews 61

9ci, Inc. 63

Aceva Technologies 65

Arch Development Corp. 67

AvantGARD GETPAID Corporation 69

CForia Software 71

CGI-AMS 73

Chargeback Support Group 75

C/LECT Consulting Inc. 77

Columbia Ultimate 79

Comtech Systems Inc. 81

Comtronic Systems, LLC 83

Credentrust Software, Inc. 85

Credit & Management Systems, Inc. 87

Credit Strategy, Inc. 89

CR Software, Inc. 91

ECredit 93

EFinance Corporation 95

EMagia Corporation 97

Experian 101

Experian-Scorex 103

EZBackoffice Inc. 105

Fair Isaac 107

Financial Risk Analysis Inc. 109

Global Visions Solutions 111

I-Many 113

Investortools, Inc. 115

LiveCapital (now owned by D&B) 117

Microbilt Corporation 119

NMC Technologies 121

Nortridge Software 123

Ontario Systems 125

Oracle 127

PAR3 Communications 129

PredictiveMetrics, Inc. 133

Receivable Management Services 135

Sceris, Inc. 137

SedTec, LLC 139

Spectrum-Prime Solutions LP 141

Synectics Group, Inc. 143

Vision Software Solutions 145

VII. Who Uses Whom - Tech References For 70 Major Organizations Named 147

VIII. Who Uses Whom - Sorted by Vendor 149

IX. About Us 151

• About the Author 151
  

• About Credit Today 151
  

• Appendix A: Portfolio Analysis Spreadsheet 153
  

• Appendix B: Pull-Out Version of the Questionnaire 154
  

• Appendix C: If You Need a Consultant 161
  

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